The Legal Connector


Vol. 4, No. 5                                                                                  June 2017

C4J News
Connecting with Hope

Let's be real: helping people can be hard, exhausting work.  Sometimes all we want to do at the end of the day (or sometimes during it) is put our head down and stop thinking, stop feeling, and just give in to the overwhelming sense of futility that our work even makes a difference.

When we feel overwhelmed, our instinct may be to isolate and shun other people's company.  However, in these moments in which we feel that carrying part of another person's burden is too much to bear, I challenge you to do this instead:  reach out.  Call on your coworker, your supervisor, a colleague from another organization and talk about anything or nothing, work-related or not.  Just reach out and connect with another human being.

Everyone needs help from someone else sometime.  You know this; it's the reason you do the work you do.  But the same rule applies to you, and to me, to all of us, all of the time.  No one is a rock or an island.  No one can do it all, all the time, without relying on help from others. 

This truth about our need for connecting to other people for help is precisely why we have relationships with others, why we organize ourselves into communities and societies, why we use isolation as a form of punishment.  We need each other. 

What's more, understanding and accepting the need for human connection helps us know ourselves, too.  The people with whom we connect help define who we are.  Therefore, broadening the the reach of our connections and expanding the scope of our definition of "community" helps make us more well-rounded people by opening our minds and hearts and lives to people who may be different from us yet with whom we've formed a connection nonetheless.

So, again, the next time you feel over-burdened or fatigued, reach out.  Connect.  And in doing so, you will not only help meet your immediate need for support, but also make your world that much more expansive.

Nicole Lindemyer , Executive Director 
Legal News You Can Use
Practical Information on Legal Issues and Resources
Some of What's In This Issue:
© Call for Justice, LLC. Note: The Legal Connector seeks to better inform the Minnesota nonprofit legal and social services communities of relevant developments that might impact their work in helping low-income Minnesotans connect with legal services. This publication may only be reproduced and used for noncommercial, personal, and/or educational uses. All other rights reserved. To the extent opinions are expressed in the TLC, they are solely opinions of Call for Justice, LLC. In the event we get something wrong or incorrect, let us know and we'll make the appropriate correction.
1. Success in Housing Discrimination Case
Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid (MMLA) recently won a housing case in favor of two African-American tenants who were being evicted on the grounds of racial discrimination. Attorneys Joey Dobson and Colleen Walbran had a difficult case to present the hard evidence of discrimination in court, but were able to win in favor of the tenants. Read the article from State Support here.
2. Call for Justice Housing Training
Do your clients have housing issues? Join Call for Justice on July 13 for a training at the Neighborhood Development Alliance on landlord/tenant law, featuring HomeLine attorney Mike Vraa. The training will cover a wide range of issues, so bring your questions. Registration is completely free, but space is limited. Sign up here!
3. Struggles of Rural Nonprofits
Community members gathered in Aitkin, MN to discuss common problems faced by nonprofits in rural Minnesota. Issues such as broadband internet access, employee demographics, and transportation were all brought to the meeting. Read the full article here.
4. Documentary Showcases Twin Cities Housing Challenges
As the shortage of affordable housing grows, low-income communities will continue to struggle to stay in their homes. A new documentary by TPT Minnesota and the Minnesota Housing Partnership illustrates the operations under way across the Twin Cities that renovate old buildings, drive up rents, and displace low-income tenants. Read the Minnpost article here.
5. De-escalation for Minnesota Police
Police are the first to intervene in many cases involving factors such as domestic violence, mental illness, and armed citizens. The Minnesota Legislature has approved $6 million to train every police officer in the state on de-escalation techniques to employ when responding to crisis situations. Read the full story here.
People, Places, and Things
News about events, personnel changes, and other items of interest.  Please send your news items to lynn.hu@callforjustice.org or nicole.lindemyer@callforjustice.org.
1. ACLU at 2017 Pride Festival
ACLU supporters will be marching in the Pride parade the weekend of June 24-25 at Loring Park in Minneapolis. Stop by their post in the southeast corner of Loring Park to learn more about their work, buy a t-shirt, or receive a yard sign. Volunteers will be available 10am - 6pm both Saturday and Sunday. For more information about Twin Cities Pride, click here.
2.  Minnesota Council of Nonprofit News
The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits frequently holds events throughout the state to help staff in the nonprofit sector. Meetings include topics of interest such as fundraising, networking, and staff diversity. See the full calendar here.
3. Legal Liaison Program in Greater Minnesota
Join Call for Justice as we hit the road for trainings on free legal resources. The next Legal Liaison Program trainings will take place in Duluth, Virginia, Grand Rapids, and Pine City. For a full schedule of upcoming trainings, please visit our website. If you are interested in holding a Legal Liaison Program training near you, contact executive director Nicole Lindemyer at nicole.lindemyer@callforjustice.org 
In Closing
Winston Churchill

If you have an announcement or legal update that you'd like to submit for possible inclusion in our July issue, please contact Lynn Hu at lynn.hu@callforjustice.org or Nicole Lindemyer at nicole.lindemyer@callforjustice.org by July 7th. We look forward to updating you again soon!
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